Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Craig Breslow Balances Faith And Baseball

Breslow At A Charity Event (FenwayNation Photo)
Maybe there is something to this Ivy League stuff.  Red Sox left-handed reliever Craig Breslow graduated from Yale and has been dubbed the 'Smartest Man In Baseball'—other than Bud Selig, of course. So it should come as no surprise that he has thoughtfully dealt with the potential conflict between his Jewish faith and playing baseball in October. In a recent article in The Jewish Journal, Breslow summed it up this way: "Typically, I try to observe the holidays in a way that is meaningful to me and indicative of my commitment to Judaism, but also honors and acknowledges the commitment that I have made to my teammates." He has also participated in online Passover Seders and High Holy Day services, and fasted the best he could on certain game days. And he will likely follow in the footsteps of Hank Greenberg, who played in a key game in 1934 in the Tigers' drive for the eventual AL pennant—a game in which he homered twice in a 2-1 win over the Yankees. Breslow has been an invaluable piece of the Red Sox puzzle this year that sees them sitting in first place by 5.5 games. Earlier this year, FenwayNation also cited Breslow as our 2013 "First Citizen" for his charitable works.